'Feminomics: Breaking New Ground - Women and the New Deal'

Article here. Excerpt:

'From an economic standpoint, will 2010 be the year of the woman? As part of the Roosevelt Institute's ongoing 'Feminomics' series, running on the New Deal 2.0 blog, I was asked to reflect on women's changing roles in the economy. Here's my take on how the New Deal advanced the cause of women's equality.

Earlier this year, the National Organization for Women reported that it was pleased with the way Congress and the Obama administration had approached the need to ensure that women workers benefited from the federal stimulus program. NOW played an important behind-the-scenes role in making sure that the federal dollars not only went to "shovel ready" infrastructure projects (like roads, bridges and other construction work), but also to our nation's "human infrastructure," especially those occupations -- such as nursing, teaching, and social work -- that are frequently held by women.
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These gains, though somewhat modest within the overall scope of the New Deal relief, nevertheless established the precedent that the plight of working women must be taken into consideration in any state or national effort to provide relief to the unemployed. Equally important, the opportunities provided by the New Deal for professional women such as Ellen Woodward to work in the upper echelons of the federal government was also unprecedented. Indeed, the New Deal's record in placing women in positions of responsibility within government -- which includes, among others, Frances Perkins, Secretary of Labor, the first female cabinet minister in American history; Josephine Roche, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury; Hilda Smith, the Director of Workers Education within the WPA; Clara Beyer, Associate Director of the Division of Labor Standards; and Mary McLeod Bethune as head of the Division of Negro Affairs in the National Youth Administration -- would not be matched again until the 1960s.

Thanks to the efforts of Eleanor Roosevelt and others, then, the New Deal-though not perfect -- broke new ground for women in America.'